I was both surprised and delighted when I found galangal (Thai ginger) and lemongrass in the supermarket in Wageningen. The first dish that came to my mind was ‘Tom Kha’, the traditional Thai coconut soup, and I knew then that I wouldn’t have to miss Thai cuisine that much. Traditionally, Tom Kha soup is made with chicken, but it’s also popular with mushrooms and other vegetables. ‘Kha’ means galangal, which is a very important ingredient with no substitute for this dish.
Ingredients for 2/3 persons
- Chicken stock/vegetable stock/water: 2 cups
- Coconut milk: 1.5 cups
- Boneless chicken in bite-sized pieces: 300-400g (skip for the vegetarian version)
- Mushrooms and other vegetables, e.g., cabbage and tomato: 150-200g (400-600g for the vegetarians)
- Lemongrass: 2 stalks cut into 2cm pieces
- Galangal: 1 chunk cut into slices
- Lime-leaves: 4-5 leaves roughly torn
- Fish sauce: 2 tablespoons (use 1 teaspoon of salt for vegetarian version)
- Sugar: 1 teaspoon
- Lime juice: 2.5 tablespoons
- Coriander: 2 tablespoons
- Chillies (optional): 2-3 crushed to release some spiciness
Preparation
- Boil the chicken/vegetable stock together with the lemongrass, galangal and lime leaves.
- When the water is boiling, add chicken. Skip this step for the vegetarian version.
- After the chicken is cooked, add the coconut milk, mushrooms and other vegetables.
- Wait until it’s all well-cooked. To avoid a mess from the bubbling coconut milk, leave uncovered and stir it once in a while.
- Add the fish sauce/salt, sugar and lime juice.
- Turn off the heat, add the coriander.
- Enjoy the soup!
(The lemongrass, galangal and lime leaves are to give scent and flavour to the soup, but you don’t eat them.)
